A carpet of rich green pasture spread as far as the eye could see. The setting sun smiled upon Ravi as he lay dreaming of the car he saw Arun,the son of their village head, zooming off in from school today. Ravi and Arun went to the same school and were 12 yrs old.The evening breeze played with his hair as he relaxed and drifted into a world far away from his village where he could be like the 'other' boys of his class.

He opened his eyes to the little rain drops that spattered on his face gently waking him up from his dreams. It had turned dark and the sky glittered with stars, the sun had given way to the glowing moon. He stood up and hurried home as soon as the face of his worried mother formed in front of his eyes.

Ravi's family consisted of his mother, his younger brother and an old lady who his mother insisted that he called 'nani'(grandmother). He was not particularly fond of her. He did not like the way she treated them. The few times he tried mentioning it to his mother, she dismissed it saying 'nani' loved them a lot and that was why she behaved that way and they owed it to her what they were today.He kept quiet, he was too young to understand everything his mother said but he loved her too much to hurt her.

He ran across the dusty, rocky path bare foot, ignoring the pain he felt as sharp rocks and pebbles bore into the tender skin of his feet. He was used to them and right now he had to rush as his mother would be worried if he was late.Besides, It was his daily job to look after his brother as his mother worked in the big house in front of their home.

He reached the big yard lined by huge trees. He stood infront of the gate taking heaved breaths. The iron gate was huge and surprisingly it was locked . The yard was usually open, guarded by lot of helpers( some of them Ravi fondly adreased 'mama'(uncle)). It was in this yard, located a little deep was the big house where 'nani' lived. Behind it was a hut( in comparision with the mansion) that had tatched roof and old looking walls. This was Ravi's home.

He tried knocking at the gate, but his fists were too small to cause any noise what so ever. Unsure of what to do, he eyed his surroundings to find some help.He found some stones lying by the side of the road. He tried picking up one of them but it was too heavy for his size. He tried the one that looked a little smaller. With all his might, he picked it up took a few steps away and hurled it at the gate with the strength he could muster. It hit the gate with a bang. He giggled at the sound. The child in him wanted to do it again. He picked all the stones around him and started throwing at the gate. In the mischevious fun he was having he had not anticipated what was to happen next.

The next moment he heard the gate open and he raised his head to look at a face he disliked. It was 'nani' herself. He had expected one of the hoarde of helpers to open the gate and not 'nani' herself. She was a well built lady in her sixties.A face that was round as a ball, her hair was always tied in a bun with patches of grey here and there.Her lips and tongue were bright red tainted by the pan she chewed. The big red bindi on her frowning forehead was itself a danger sign.He froze and did not move an inch. She glared at him with blood shot eyes.

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